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Imagining what a 64-team 2021 College Football Playoff would look like

By John Scimeca

Jan 11, 2021; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban and offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood (70) celebrates with the CFP National Championship trophy after beating the Ohio State Buckeyes in the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 11, 2021; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban and offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood (70) celebrates with the CFP National Championship trophy after beating the Ohio State Buckeyes in the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s March again, which means that it’s time to imagine the 64-team College Football Playoff that you’ve been dying to see.

It’s that time of year again, when “March Madness” brings us the improbable upsets, the late-game drama, and firm resolve of the champion. With the tears, the celebrations, and the new names that emerge to the forefront of the U.S. sports consciousness, it’s always fun to imagine the ultimate what-if scenario for college football: the 64-team playoff that encompasses all Division I college football programs.

Last year’s NCAA Tournament was canceled for men’s and women’s basketball, like most sporting events around the world in March 2020. This year’s edition March Madness promises to be double the fun and double the drama (even if it’s all in Indiana and not in nationwide locations), considering the missed opportunity for last year’s tournament.

Of course, we’d be remiss to not compile the annual 64-team college football playoff bracket this March, as well. (Don’t miss out on last year’s 64-team bracket!)

23 conferences got automatic qualifiers for this spring’s 2021 64-team bracket — 10 from the FBS and 13 from the FCS. The remaining 41 teams got at-large bids and were seeded by considering their CFP and AP poll rankings. Here are the same rules for this year’s bracket:

The rules

  1. Each conference champion is granted an automatic bid to this fictitious 64-team Division I playoff.
  2. Four regions will be used. First and second rounds take place at the home field of the higher-seeded team, and the Regionals (Sweet 16 and Elite Eight) take place at the designated major bowl game site similar to the “New Year’s Six” sites.
  3. The Final Four would rotate in different locations each year.
  4. Teams from the same conference cannot be in the same ‘pod’ of four teams.
  5. The overall Nos. 1 through 4 teams would be seeded (so that the best-ranked and the second-ranked team overall would be on separate sides of the bracket).
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